Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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try this wonderful italian recipe: tortellini di cioccolato alla ricotta con porri e paprika..... very good !!!
Forum Activity for @karla Montenegro
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Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Sun dried tomato chocolate sounds nice actually 
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Hi Nena
We make two chilli chocolates, they are both fresh cream ganaches, one white and one dark, the white truffle is covered in white chocolate and a Sao Thome version for the dark. The reason we think ours are a little different is that we use fresh red chillies chopped fine in our ganache plus of course a touch of Welsh vodka never hurts does it?
This combination gives an almost fruity heat which creeps up on you when you've already said "that's not very hot is it?" Suddenly WOW "I'm getting it now!" It never fails to amuse especially when we put them out on sample and people try them without asking what they are :-)
White Chilli Truffle - Wales the True Taste - Gold 2010
Dark Chilli Truffle - Academy of Chocolate - Bronze 2011
Dark Chilli Truffle - Great Taste - Gold 2011
Best regards
Emma
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Hi Virginia, do you mind explaining these delicious sounding goat cheese truffles in more detail? Do you substitute goat cheese for butter in the ganache? Or enrobe little balls of straight goat cheese? I want to start playing with the combination as I was just informed that I have a schinus molle tree (pink peppercorn) growing in my garden, sure enough i tasted the little berries and they were the freshest pepper taste you can imagine!
h
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Thanks to Howard and Hanna ( www.mamorchocolates.com ) and Andrew Donnelly in Melbourne Australia, we produced a Kava flavoured 70% dark chocolate (KokoKava) made from SAMOAN GOLD trinitario cocoa beans grown here in Samoa, now available from www.kokosamoainternational.com in Sydney. We had five islands represented, Tokelau, Routuma, Kiribati, FIJI and Samoa, all sitting around a bowl of grog (kava) and these kava fanatics just loved the Cocoa Samoa Limited KokoKava 50gm bar...with 250mg of Vanuatu kava ... we now want www.c-spot.com to review our KokoKava chocolate bar. X-citing times. Steve stevebrownsamoa@gmail.com
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Nothing exotic as blood and cherries, I'm afraid.
mango and jalepeno (white choc ganache) is about as off the wall as I get.
Chai spice is another -butter ganache with typical chai spices
Nanaimo bar is another, a typical Canadian treat, but mine are mini sized--graham crust base, coconut custard top, enrobed in bitter 70%
Strawberry and black pepper work well--again, a white choc. ganache
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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cool to see your bread comment! i used to spread rounds of artisanal baguette with apricot preserves and enrobe them in 56% by Callebaut..... and also the same process with a thin slice of gianduja on each round of crusty bread.... the texture combo and the salty- sweet- dark is pretty phenomenal
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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yeah I hear you! it's the smoke that makes it difficult, not so much the cheese... IMHO
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Hi everyone: A fascinating discussion because I have been working on new flavours for sometime. My training is not actually as a chocolate chef, I'm actually a PhD food chemist. Currently I am producing about forty flavours for high-end clients in Australia and New Zealand (although I'm a Hungarian-American). In the past I've not only done all the alcoholic flavours (see beer chocolates at right) but also deer velvet and venison salami chocolates. Plus we have our line of aphrodisiac chocolates for men and women using rain forest herbs from Southeast Asia. The numbers of men enjoying Tomcat Alley certainly swelled to epic proportions! My Pocket Venus truffles revive a flagging female libido too. They are best served as a matching set. Just now I got lots of attention for my garlic truffles and kangaroo salami truffles , which are actually an hors d'oeuvre. I'm brewing up now something that I can only reveal now as an "Operatic Chocolate". Kind regards, Hanna Frederick, Mamor Chocolates and High Tea Szalon, Melbourne, Australia
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Oh! chocolate in Seattle turned me on to goat cheese truffles with crushed pink peppercorns on top. easy to make, don't keep very long and definitely a distinctive taste. I love them!
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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yes, and the smoked alder salt that is out now is delicious with chocolate.....ground sage added to it with peanuts and chili is to die for.
updated by @nena creasy: 06/15/15 10:24:51
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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I am still trying to work out chocolate chili bars. Does anyone have any pointers on how to perfect it...When I add just cayenne powder to my bars, they are hot without any chili flavor...should I be satisfied with this? HELP!
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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The weirdest one I've tried I think would be a cardamom piece from a chocolate shop in Delft. It was delicious but a very unusual combo.The weirdest one I've made, which people either loved or hated was a layered piece with strawberry pate de fruit and white chocolate Parmesan ganache dipped in white chocolate.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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I'm not big on flavored chocolate, but I tasted some white and black truffle oil ganaches in dark chocolate, also olive oil ganaches in Montreal by Genevieve Grandbois. Until reading your column here, I thought that was pretty far out. Some of the combinations described in the comments...I dunno.
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I just made a white chocolate wasabi ganache piece, probably the oddest I've tried and made. Some people like it some....not so much. So far 50/50 Still testing but that's the oddest for me
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OK, the breast milk thing takes the cake. There was a chef in Brooklyn, I think, that was written about maybe last year or so, who used the extra breast milk his wife produced to make cheese, ice cream, etc. and served it in his cafe/restaurant until he was stopped. I thought donating it would have made more sense. Combining it with pralines and chocolate? No -- although I think there's at least enough material to do some stand-up comedy with the idea.
I didrecently have a taste of a John Kelly habanero & jalapeno truffle fudge bar. Much more heat than the usual ancho/chipotle mix that is used by some chocolatiers. It doesn't hit immediately, but when it does, it's definitely not for the faint of heart.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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During my time with Puccini Bomboni in Amsterdam we pushed the boundaries until the boundaries collapsed around us and then basically took a step back and just observed the mayhem going on in chocolateland. We would venture out and take a look... scuttle back to the safety of our cave and sample, discuss and critique what we had found. The worst was Lapsang Souchon tea ganache in 56% ...... tasted like smoked fish had been added. we had a go at japanese horseradish too . I have tasted Gjetost and Dolfin pink pepper at a cocktail party and that was a winner. But I believe the fruitbasket has to go to Vosges and Michelle's Bacon Bar... freakin awesome.The ultimate No-No....... Pralines made with Breast Milk, I kid you not. cool question Clay, I'm lovin' it!
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Salt And Chocolate. At first I thought this was two taste bud extremes that could not possibly work. But one bite and I was hooked. The salt added an extra zing to the taste buds making them jump with excitement.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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I made a bar yesterday - white chocolate swirled with cardamon and dotted with pink peppercorns and lemongrass
Also made another white chocolate bar with fennugreek, lemon peel and pistachios
Always looking for new combinations
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I recently tried dark (about 60% I think) with rose water essence. I liked it but my other half didn't. He doesn't like rose essence anyway -- says it tastes like soap. While I did like it, it's not one I'd want every day, the way I like good plain, dark every day.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Our most popular truffle is a dark chocolate grapefruit balsamic.
My newest experiment is tarragon and 55%. YUM.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Say about few years back I tried Lamb Curry which tasted divine.
Coming from Indian back ground, Curries are staple yet haven't tried anything like this.
Wondered what made it finger licking delicious and its Dark Chocolate...
From then on, when I have gathering, i add dark chocolate to my Lamb Curry and always famous. Worth trying.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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The importer for Artisan du Chocolat is in Salt Lake City, A Priori. They are affiliated with Caputo's Market. I was the person who put the two together, so I can let them both know that there is interest in the buffalo milk the next time an order gets placed.
As for tasting/pairing cheese/chocolate. There is no correct order. Try it both ways and see if there are differences. Also important is to keep the relative amounts the same as large differences/changes in amount will change the balance of the flavors.
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I got it in London, but you might be able to get it by mail order. The Meadow might have it, but I don't know if they carry the buffalo-milk bar.
We had everyone taste the chocolate and cheese together. I think the cheese was called Roomana, but I didn't see the label. I just know that it was a 3-year-old gouda, so it was crystalline, nutty and almost butterscotchy.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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2 questions:
1) Where can you find the Artisan's buffalo milk chocolate and
2) When pairing cheese and chocolate (OK, maybe a stupid question, but I really don't know this) do you taste them together or separate, and if the latter, which goes first?
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Have you tried Artisan's buffalo milk chocolate yet? It's very creamy and sweet. At the 92Y event last weekend, we paired Pralus' Barre Infernale Lait with a 3-year-old gouda. It was amazing!
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Yes, biltong is very "South African" we all love it and I am surprised at my fellow South Africans reluctance to try it.
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I googled "biltong" and found it was a type of cured meat. This kind of makes sense that it would be good, as the whole salty-sweet thing is very popular now (salted caramel with chocolate, bacon bits on chocolate, etc.).
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Hi, I know it is late in the discussion, but I though I should say we made chocolate covered "biltong" that turned out divine, but very few people were actually willing to try it although it is a fairly common combination in South Africa. Then for a beer fest I made a good old Castle Larger beer truffle on the basis of a water truffle with no cream etc. just the beer and it is so popular I have to make it all the time.
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Hmm...I'll be in SF this coming weekend and I'll look for the Zotter. The weirdest flavor for me was truffles in ganache. I think it was Oriol Balaguer but I got it in that shop on Park Ave and about 58th street about a year ago. It was vile. Expensive and vile, and I'm pretty adventurous. I did like the olive oil/gray salt thing by Xocolatl (sp?) and I didn't expect to. This stuff is really getting expensive when you open it all up and there's basically a single portion (~50 gm or so) inside. When it's great I don't mind at all. When it isn't (as with the truffle chocolate) it bites.
updated by @Keith Ayoob: 06/21/15 03:19:52
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I once tried a Passion fruit puree truffle by Paul A Young for which he won a taste award. It was absolutely amazing. The flavour was precise and exciting.
I have also come across Zotter who makes the most unheard of flavours although I have personally not tasted his collection. In one of his chocolates he has incorporated beetroot as a flavour. I read somewhere that he once wanted to make blood flavoured chocolates, but didn't end up going through with it.
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John -
I was lucky enough to sit in on a lecture/discussion/demonstration on the technology behind foodpairings.com in 2010. It's been VERY useful to me. I recommend it to everyone who's interested in the subject.
:: Clay
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I used www.foodpairing.com extensively to reserch food combinations.Does anyone else in the group use this? Their sibling site, albeit not as extensive flavour wise,is www.foodpairing.be if you want to give it a go.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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John:
Thanks for sharing. Done with restraint, I think that this would make a lovely combination. I can see how a real fruity olive oil would add complexity to this.
:: Clay
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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Clay
I have used goat's cheese and black truffle in a chocolate truffle that's made using extra virgil oilive oil. real smooth nice taste...
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I once was served (did not order) a warm chocolate cake made with tapenada. Since it was on the table, I had to try it: one of the worst things I have ever tasted, ruined an otherwise great meal. I could not get the metallic taste of the black olives out of my mouth for weeks. Seriously, I just don't get it sometimes. I have a friend making chocolates with corn-nuts, olive oil, etc., all pretty nice as he is really good at balancing flavors. I did the saffron thing as well when we ate at Batali's place in NY years ago. The dessert was nice, but the best part of the meal was listening to Hendrix and Led Zep on the PA. They were playing albums all the way through...outstanding.
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are mint and cumin in milk or coriander and grapefruit in milk strange enough? This are just a few of my flavour combinations.. want to try them?
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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In Italy I had some truffles that I won't forget. It has been a while ... I think it was in 2008 and Somewhere around Tuscany we had gotten a chocolate called Tobacco ... upon cutting it, there was actual smoke coming out of it. We honestly couldn't believe it and were just looking at each other thinking "Did I just see that or was it an illusion!" ...
Another confection from the same place was the Tequila ... and it contained an actual worm inside. It was hard to miss, as it was hard to cut through ... we both couldn't make ourselves eat it
Edit: I will have to find the picture of that one ... I just saw it on my screensaver the other day. It is too bad we couldn't capture the smoke from the other confection though.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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My experience happened on accident. I love cheese, and chocolate, but at a cafe, I had a sandwich and a slice of chocolate cake,.......there was a slice of swiss cheese that happened to get the chocolate on it....I was in heaven....swiss cheese dipped in the chocolate frosting sold me.......i would live on that if i could....it would kill me though.
Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate
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The strangest chocolate combination I had was in Belgium,Bitter ganache, with distillate
Of Havana leaves. andAlmond pralin with crispfried onion intersting combo not for every one.